Bik Rai

Rural Family Physician. World traveller. Sports enthusiast.

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@BillSimmons @ryenarussillo Kawhi’s uncle hugging Larry Tannebaum and Masai Ujiri. Does this change your opinion?

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@TheSGEM @CAEP_Docs @SRPCanada @alandrummond2 Gov’t recently approved use of agency nurses at this site. Should lead to improvements in the volume of closures. 🤞

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@OntarioCollege She’s an amazing family physician who has done so much for that small rural community.

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@alandrummond2 @globeandmail And to think a lot of these departments are closing down because there’s no money in the hospital budgets for agency nurses. Obviously a complex situation, but it’s terrible that ERs are closing down while the gov’t is sitting on that cash.

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@TheSGEM We could use another 3-4 MDs in the area, but that’s a story for a different day haha

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@TheSGEM Good work on the rural coverage, Ken. To be clear, Durham is closed because of nursing shortages, not physician shortages. We have our shifts covered for the rest of the year.

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@ramit The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel is one that I recommend the most

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@petrosoniak @OntariosDoctors Nothing new. I feel like there is a huge chasm between rural and urban health care which always takes the backseat in negotiations and funding.

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

Massive health Human Resources issues in rural Ontario where younger physicians, nurses and allied health care workers aren’t settling. We need to incentivize younger professionals to move to these areas.

[Ken Milne MD @TheSGEM]

That brings it to four rural ERs closed temporarily in our region this week.

How many need to be closed to trigger a national solution?
@SRPCanada @alandrummond2
@CAEP_Docs @SherOnHealth @ScottMillerCTV

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@DrEvdLinde During those few days I was looking after a critically ill patient who couldn’t be transferred to a hospital with ICU because of weather conditions. Thankfully the patient survived but I worry what would happen if Durham’s ER was closed.

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@DrEvdLinde Agreed. The closest hospital to ours is 20 km away which doesn’t seem like much. However, I was working over Christmas this year when all local highways were closed because of significant snow. Imagine not being able to get to a hospital during an emergency because of snow.

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@allengreenwood @CBCQueensPark The teams work well in rural areas. We just need more doctors and allied health care workers to staff them.

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@allengreenwood @IlanShahin Please don’t forget rural primary care in your thoughts

[Dr Kate Gregorevic @DrKGregorevic]

One of the most dangerous ideas in the last two years is that it is acceptable to use social restrictions to decrease load on healthcare, rather than addressing the chronic under investment in staff and infrastructure in an ageing population with growing health inequality.

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@shanxonline Will Lou working ICU hours

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@shanxonline @allengreenwood ran into traffic issues 👀👀

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@shanxonline @steven_lebron Burger is solid there, too! 👀👀

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@allengreenwood @shanxonline 💯

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@JohnPasalis Severe shortage of nurses, especially in rural areas, may contribute.

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@NBACanada @Raptors @allengreenwood @ZachLowe_NBA

[Bik Rai @BikRaiMD]

@shanxonline @SeanFitz_Gerald He’s just driving people indoors 😩. Pure muppetry